Eclipse enthusiasm

Students watch tape of event, talk to former LaSalle teacher who witnessed it.

Students watch tape of event, talk to former LaSalle teacher who witnessed it.

April 06, 2006|JIM MEENAN Tribune Staff Writer

The enthusiasm within the auditorium was as amazing as the solar eclipse they had gathered to watch. And though the broadcast from Side, Turkey, on the big screen was taped a day earlier, the clapping and outright cheering that went on at LaSalle Intermediate Academy from the fifth-, sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders when it happened was as though it were being shown live. "I think it's really cool because not that many people get to see it," said Kevin Tidmarsh, a sixth-grader, after last week's assembly. "Even though we didn't see it in person, it was still good we saw it by Web cam. "It's just amazing how the sun, which is something we see every day, to see it blocked out." Alan Dang, another sixth-grader, enjoyed it, too. "I thought it was pretty cool," he said. "I was amazed how the sun got blocked out by the moon and when the sun's rays were coming out of the moon." The hourlong assembly, presented by NASA's Space Science Education and Public Outreach Program and hosted by Philip Sakimoto, professional specialist in the physics department at the University of Notre Dame, featured not only the eclipse, but a live conversation between students and former LaSalle science teacher Beth Ann Reed, who is now teaching in Turkey and saw the eclipse live. A dozen or so LaSalle students asked Reed a question over the phone, which the whole auditorium could hear. "It's nice to hear from someone who actually experienced the eclipse than just by seeing it yourself from a Web cam," Alan said. "It's really nice to talk to someone what was there," Kevin said. "Instead of just seeing it, you can ask someone that was there and they can tell you the details." And the enthusiastic Reed furnished many a detail, thanks in part to the questions the students asked in a lively phone feed. "It was pretty amazing," said Reed. "One of the things was how quickly it all happened. "When the moon covered the sun, everyone in our group was screaming." One student asked her about the colors in the sky during the eclipse. "It was dark like night," she said. "It was kind of a pinkish blue on the horizon. It had a weird and interesting glow." Though broadcasters had said the temperature dropped about six degrees during the several minute span when the moon blocked the sun at their site, Reed told the students it felt like a 15-degree drop where she was. And when the sun came back, it was stunning, too, she said in response to another question. "It was really amazing," she said. "At first time you start seeing a ray, but you can't believe how bright it is. But it's also a bit of a letdown. "It's so unique and it happens in such a short time. There are so many things to look at and so little time to watch them." Sakimoto, who used to be the acting director of the NASA education and public outreach program before coming to Notre Dame, told Reed from where she watched it probably lasted three minutes. As neat as it was for the students to see in person, Sakimoto, who has seen one before himself, said the televised version is nothing compared with the real thing. Still, he was very happy to give the students a taste of it. "The idea is through showing things like this Web cast all across the country in science centers, museums, schools and community groups, and having them all take the same feed but putting on a local event, that way they get a local connection to what's going on," Sakimoto said. "It's part of giving the taxpayers what they paid for. What NASA is is a public service." Solar eclipses will take place in 2017 and 2024 in the United States, with the latter being visible just south of Indianapolis, Sakimoto told the students. Kevin said he plans to attend. "Definitely," he said. "When I am 30, I want to see the one in Indiana."Staff writer Jim Meenan: jmeenan@sbtinfo.com (574) 235-6342